'NCIS' Season 11 Fans Angry About Cote de Pablo Departure

Cote de Pablo announced her departure from NCIS earlier this month and fans are not happy with her decision.

On Wednesday, #DearCBSWeWantCote was trending on Twitter. Using the hashtag, fans expressed their sadness and also attempted to convince de Pablo to reconsider her decision.

"This broke my heart. It's like a family losing a member," wrote one Twitter user.

"I hope Cote knows we will do ANYTHING to make sure she gets the best treatment possible. She deserves everything," tweeted another fan.

Other fans pointed out de Pablo was a major reason for the show's success.

"You had a problem 8 year ago & the answer was Cote. You have a problem now & the answer is still Cote," wrote another.

"We do not want to lose another female from this show," tweeted another fan.

Others explained that de Pablo's character is a fundamental part of NCIS. She has played agent Ziva David for eight seasons and her character, which debuted during season 3, has been a crucial part of the investigative team led by Leroy Jehtro Gibbs and Anthony DiNozzo.

"I've had eight great years with NCIS and Ziva David," de Pablo said in her farewell statement in July. "I have huge respect and affection for Mark [Harmon], Gary [Glasberg], Michael [Weatherly], David [McCallum], Rocky [Carroll], Pauley [Perrette], Brian [Dietzen], Sean [Murray], all of the team and CBS. I look forward to finishing Ziva's story."

CBS thanked the 33-year-old actress for her role in the show, in a statement the station released to the public.

"We respect Cote's decision, thank her for being an important part of the NCIS team and for eight terrific years playing Ziva David," the statement read. "Cote and CBS share a great respect for the NCIS audience, and we look forward to working with her and the producers on appropriate closure in this chapter of Ziva's story."

The actress will return in the fall to end her character's role on CBS' hit show. It's unknown how many episodes it will take for her character to depart the series.

NCIS is television's most popular series with a viewership of 22.7 million. Season 11 premieres on Sept. 24.